\u201cToo often, today\u2019s energy debate feels disconnected from this reality, framed as a binary choice: wholesale change or no change at all. This is a false choice and it risks clouding our ability to make the right decisions as a country,\u201d he writes.<\/p>\n
In a consultation response seen by The Times, National Gas warns that \u201cinfrastructure required to meet low-probability but high-impact events, such as periods of peak power demand<\/a> coinciding with low renewable generation, is increasingly under commercial pressure\u201d. <\/p>\n \u201cIf these pressures persist, there is a risk that critical infrastructure providers may exit the market without replacement, creating material risks to security of supply,\u201d it says, calling for \u201ca range of both market-based and infrastructure interventions\u201d to address this.<\/p>\n The government should \u201cmaintain existing storage capacity and introduce or facilitate expansion\u201d to help provide \u201cgreater domestic resilience, and protection against shipping delays, market disruption or extreme weather\u201d, it says. <\/p>\n Britain has far lower gas storage levels than most European countries and its largest gas storage site, Rough, is at risk of closure<\/a>. However, Rough is a long-duration, seasonal storage site that can provide a steady modest supply of gas throughout winter months, whereas National Gas says that solutions need to \u201cprovide high-deliverability, and short-duration supply\u201d to help with periods of peak demand. <\/p>\n National Gas also backs new floating terminals<\/a> to receive and store extra shipments of liquefied natural gas, an idea the government suggests in its consultation. <\/p>\n However, the company calls on the government to also consider \u201chow best to optimise remaining UK continental shelf production to keep existing gas fields for their full lifetime\u201d to ensure that \u201cGreat Britain makes full use of its existing domestic resources\u201d.<\/p>\n The government has sought to play down the impact of its North Sea policies on security of supply, stressing in its consultation that the basin is in natural decline and its decision to ban new exploration would not make \u201ca meaningful difference to supply\u201d. <\/p>\n National Gas says that \u201cwhile geological decline is a significant factor, non-geological drivers may also be contributing to reduced UK continental shelf supply\u201d. Industry groups have complained that the prolonged windfall tax on the sector<\/a> is hastening the decline. <\/p>\n A spokesman for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero said: \u201cGas will continue to play a key role in our energy system as we transition to clean, more secure, homegrown energy. <\/p>\n![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/\/02e79dd4-b44a-4f5c-b119-e0dc4e3e3509.jpg\")
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